Christmas Snapshots
by Muggle Jane
Summary: Series of unrelated Christmasy oneshots, combining the Connect a Character and 25 Days of Christmas challenges from HPFC. Features Hannah/Neville, Neville/Luna, Luna/George, George/Hermione, Hermione/Bill, Bill/Luna, Luna/Oliver, Oliver/Ginny, Ginny/Remus, Remus/Tonks
1. Hannah and Neville

**A/N: Not my characters, etc.**

**Part 1 of Christmas Snapshots, written for both 25 Days of Christmas and Connect the Characters from HPFC.**

**Pairing: Hannah/Neville, Prompt: Holiday parties  
**

Was that... crying? Neville looked up from tending his fanged geranium and cocked his head. Yes, that was definitely crying. He got up and headed out to where the stairs were. He knew Hannah was busy downstairs. The pub was closed down for the day, but she'd gotten up early to get it ready.

This was the day of the fourth annual DA Christmas party, and the first since she'd become proprietress of the Leaky Cauldron. Years past had seen the party at the Hog's Head Inn in Hogsmeade, but Aberforth always did complain about the mess afterward and Hannah had insisted that for this year, it needed to change locales.

And so, she'd risen before the sun to bake and cook and decorate and when Neville had offered to help, he'd been allowed to situate the tree, and then banished upstairs where he would be out of the way. Only now it sounded like things weren't going so well for her.

Neville came down the stairs to see Hannah sitting in a heap in the middle of the kitchen, thoroughly tangled up in garland. There was something bubbling over on the stove, smoke coming from the oven, and a box of Christmas baubles was smashed on the floor. And Hannah was the source of the crying.

He went to her and gently unwound her from her predicament. "What do you need?" he asked kindly, brushing a tear off her cheek with his thumb.

"It's no good!" Hannah wailed, looking up at him with watery eyes, red and swollen from crying. "I can't do it! The gingerbread is burned, the mulled wine is useless and I think I knocked the tree over!"

"There now, sweetheart," he soothed, pulling her head against his shoulder and stroking her blond hair. "Why don't you go upstairs and sit down and I'll sort this all out."

"I can't!" she sobbed, throwing her arms around him. "There's still so much to do!"

"Just take a break," he pressed, kissing the top of her silky hair. "Just take a minute, sit down, have a cup of spiced mead. I'll clean this up and then we'll do it together."

He stood up, drawing her up with him. "Just a moment." He got a cup and filled it with some of her own delicious spiced mead and pressed it in her hand. "There, now. Go sit upstairs and drink this." He had to gently propel her by her shoulders over to the stairs, but she finally went up and sat down on one of the stuffed chairs. She tucked her feet up under her and started drinking the mead.

Neville was right, she told herself. Sitting away from everything and having a drink helped. She hadn't really eaten that morning and she'd been up for far too long and she was just wearing down. A sandwich. A sandwich and then she could get back to it.

Were those voices? But no one was supposed to be there until 7:00. She'd definitely specified 7:00 on all the invitations. Frowning, Hannah picked up the now-empty mug and went back downstairs, determined to figure out what was going on.

As she looked into the kitchen, what she saw made her stop suddenly. There was an unmistakable red-haired witch cleaning up the shards from the Christmas baubles. And there was a mane of bushy brown hair floating through the room just before a long strand of garland. "What's going on?"

Neville heard her and emerged from the dining room, where he'd been trimming the tree. "I called for help, sweetheart."

"Just tell us what to do," Hermione said firmly, stopping in front of her with the garland extending in the air behind her like a giant red and green snake.

"When Mum throws a big party, she makes the whole family help out," Ginny added. "It's just too much for one person to do alone."

Hannah put her mug down on the bench and went over to wrap her arms around her husband. "Thank you," she murmured to him.

"Anything for you, sweetheart."

At Hannah's direction, the four of them got the pub ready. Halls were decked, wine was mulled, all manner of food was cooked to perfection.

By 7:00, people were already starting to trickle in. By 7:30, the Leaky Cauldron was full. Former DA members and friends and family milled around, laughing, chatting, dancing.

And Hannah Longbottom looked over the room from behind the bar, a proud smile on her face. She'd done it. She'd thrown a party to be proud of.

Neville came up behind her, putting his arms around her waist and resting his chin on her shoulders. "I won't tell Mrs. Weasley, but I think you put on the best parties I've ever been to."

She turned her head and their lips met just as a rogue firework exploded overhead.


	2. Luna and Neville

**A/N: Changed the rating to T because Luna got a little frisky on me.**

**Part 2 of Christmas Snapshots, written for both 25 Days of Christmas and Connect the Characters from HPFC.**

**Pairing: Luna/Neville, Prompt: Sledding**

"Luna?" Neville asked, rubbing his eyes like he couldn't believe what he was seeing. "What are you doing here? What time is it?"

"Hello Neville. It's just past midnight," the blond girl answered pleasantly. "I need your help."

The wizard lowered his wand and took another swipe at his sleep-crusted eyes. This wasn't an unusual occurrence, Luna just showed up sometimes. Of course, normally it was during the daylight hours. "What do you need?"

"Help, of course, I just said as much." She peered at him for a moment. "You'll need clothes, Neville, and a warm cloak."

He yawned widely, considering the merits of asking her to come back in the morning. The actual morning, when the sun was up. "Come in, I'll be just a minute," he found himself saying.

She stepped through the door, her gray eyes dancing in the light from her wand. "You have very nice pajamas."

Neville glanced down at his green-and-red striped pajamas. "I'll be right back." He went into his bedroom and, with a look of longing for the warm softness of his bed, got dressed. When he came back out, Luna was holding a peppermint stick in one hand, her wand still lit in the other.

"Oh, hello," she greeted like she hadn't been expecting him.

"What are we doing?" It was hard for Neville to keep the sleep-deprived irritation out of his voice.

"We're going sledding," came the airy answer before Luna pulled open the door and admitted them out into the snow.

"Sledding?" He couldn't believe his ears. "At midnight?"

"Just past midnight. Closer to one, I think."

He didn't know how to react to that, other than to follow her. She held her wand before her and the light caught and reflected on the millions of collected snowflakes that covered the ground. "Do you even have a sled?"

"I don't," she admitted. "That's why you're here."

Sledding. With no sled. At 'closer to one' in the morning. "Can't this wait until morning?" he groaned.

She stopped and turned back to look at him, head cocked to the side. And then she burst into laughter, the high sound somewhat swallowed by the snow. "Oh, Neville. You're always so funny! It is morning!" She turned back and continued her trek.

The snow wasn't very deep, just up to their ankles. But it was slippery, and Neville was finding it hard to keep up with her pace and keep to his feet. And then his foot went the wrong way on a patch of particularly icy snow and he fell. On instinct, he grabbed her cloak and he plummeted forward and she came crashing down beside him.

"Sorry, Luna," he muttered, rising up from his rather undignified position sprawled on his front.

"That's alright," she replied brightly, springing to her feet with an uncanny agility. "You're getting started a little early, though. We can go slower if you'd like."

"Yeah, that'd be good." He took the hand she held out to him and used it to steady himself as he got to his feet. They started walking again, slower this time. "Where are we going?"

They'd walked a little way out of Hogsmeade by this point, where Neville had taken over Dogweed and Deathcap, far enough away that they could no longer smell the smoke that rose up from cozy fires all over the village.

Luna stopped suddenly and Neville almost fell again. "Here, I think."

Neville looked around. They looked to be on one of the flat, grassy plains that surrounded Hogsmeade, albeit covered in snow. "How are we going to go sledding out here?"

Luna took a small, flat piece of wood out of the pocket of her cloak and put it on the ground. Her gray eyes shifted to him and she seemed to be waiting for him to do something.

"That's a little small for a sled," he said after a while.

"Yes! That's why I needed you, you see." She gestured to the piece of wood with her wand.

"What do you want me to do with it?" he asked after a minute.

"Make it into a sled, of course! You were an auror and aurors have to be good at transfiguration."

He peered doubtfully at the small bit of wood. "I'm a bit rubbish at transfiguration, actually," he admitted after a moment.

"Oh, well that changes things! I guess we won't be able to go sledding after all." She looked so disappointed, so forlorn that Neville found himself wanting to apologize to her. She stooped and picked up the piece of wood, sliding it back into her pocket. "I asked Ron, but Hermione got quite cross with me. And Harry said that I'm not allowed there anymore unless the sun is out, and I don't personally know where any other aurors live."

"It's freezing out here. Why don't we get back inside and I'll make you some hot cocoa?" He was surprised to hear that coming out of his mouth. He desperately wanted to get back into bed. If he was lucky, really lucky, maybe there would still be some of the heat left from his body.

"Alright, Neville." She took his hand in hers, and he could feel the warmth from it even through his gloves and her woolen mittens. Together, they walked back through the trail they'd made in the snow toward the village.

He opened the door to let them into his house and light some of the lights. The fire was still smoldering in the fireplace and he stoked it a little higher. "You sit down, I'll be just a minute."

He was almost to the door when her soft voice stopped him. "Do you have any pajamas I could borrow?"

He turned towards the slight witch, incredulous. "What?"

"Pajamas. There's nothing better than hot cocoa by the fire in pajamas, but I didn't happen to bring any with me." She was looking at him expectantly again, her large eyes wide and imploring.

"Yes?" He blinked at her for a moment. "Yes, I do. Just half a second." The blond wizard passed through into his bedroom again and pulled a clean pair of pajamas from a drawer. He went back out and handed them to her and then went into the kitchen, wondering if he wasn't perhaps dreaming.

When he emerged with a mug of cocoa in each hand, he was so surprised he almost dropped them. Luna was standing in front of the fire in the white-and-blue striped pajama shirt, the golden light from the fire gleaming off of her bare legs. She turned and smiled at him. "Thank you! The trousers were just hopeless but the shirt is almost like a nightdress." She'd rolled up the sleeves so that her hands stuck out properly, and she came and took one of the mugs from him. "This smells wonderful."

They sat together in the light from the fire, drinking their hot cocoa. When the pretty witch had finished her cocoa and set the mug on the end table beside her, Neville blurted out, "You should stay here." And then immediately wished he could crawl under the sofa and hide. "It's late and dark and..." Hiding under the sofa sounded really appealing.

"Oh, that's very kind. Thank you!" She got up and went into the bedroom. He stared after her for a moment in silence before standing up and following her. She was already nestled in between his soft white sheets, her head on his pillow.

"I'll sleep out there, then?" He'd asked for it, really.

"Don't be silly, it's your bed. There's plenty of room for the both of us."

He stared at her for a moment. "But I don't have my pajamas on."

"You could go get them on."

Right, he thought. As simple as that. He picked up the discarded nightclothes and took them into the next room and quickly changed. When he went back into his bedroom, Luna was lying on her back, her blond hair spread across the pillow like a golden wave. After another moment of staring, he lifted up the side of the bedcovers and slipped in next to her.

"There, see?" she asked, looking over at him. "Plenty of room." She seemed to take in the way he was awkwardly perched on the edge of the bed, precariously trying to keep himself from touching her. "More room, I think, if you come over here and put your arms around me."

"Put my..." He trailed off. This had to be a dream.

"Arms around me, that's right. It'll be warmer too, it'll get quite chilly when the fire goes out." Stunned, he did as he was bade. When his arm slid around her waist, she shifted until she was on her side with her back pressed up against his chest. "Goodnight, Neville."

"Goodnight, Luna," he replied, entirely bewildered. He didn't know how he would ever get to sleep, but it didn't take long at all before darkness claimed him.

He awoke to the smell of strawberries and peppermint, and when he opened his eyes, Luna was gazing at him. "Good morning, Neville."

"Morning, Luna." Not a dream then. She was still there, her hands clasped on his shoulder, resting her chin on her hands and peering at him with those big, gray eyes.

"Do you want to kiss me?"

"What, me?" His mind was struggling to wake up. Maybe he was still dreaming, after all.

"Yes, you. Do you want to?"

He bent his head up and kissed her gently. "Like that?"

"Like that. Or like this." She leaned forward and kissed him with a dizzying thoroughness, her tongue darting into his mouth to meet his.

Like much of what had occurred since 'closer to one' that morning, he wasn't entirely sure what was going on, but in due course he found himself settled on top of her, all of their nightclothes gone. She was drawing him in towards her with her slim legs wrapped around his hips, her fingers digging into his shoulders and her lips moving eagerly under his. They came together in the chill winter morning, and afterward Luna lay contentedly in the circle of his arms. "We should go sledding more often."


	3. Luna and George

**A/N: So this got sad.**

**Part 3 of Christmas Snapshots, written for both 25 Days of Christmas and Connect the Characters from HPFC.**

**Pairing: Luna/George, Prompt: family**

George jumped, visibly startled, when a small pale hand slid on top of his, where it was wrapped around his knee. He was sitting on the stairs in the middle of the darkened, empty shop; his knees drawn up to his chest, lost to memories. "Luna? How'd you get in?"

"Through the door," she replied. She sat down on the step next to him. "It wasn't locked. Your mum was wondering where you'd gotten to."

It was Christmas Eve. Usually, Christmas Eve was spent staying up late in the living room of the Burrow, drinking spiked Christmas punch and enjoying being with family. This year, though... "I'm not going."

"I know," Luna replied. "That's why I'm here. Someone else might have insisted on you going back with them." She settled in, her hands tucked between her knees in deference to the cold.

It was a little chilly in the shop, George noticed suddenly. It was fully dark now. He'd closed early for the day and had meant to go up to his flat, but on the way up the stairs he'd seen the display of Skiving Snackboxes, and he'd remembered dreaming those up with Fred. He'd remembered the carefree days of Hogwarts, when his twin- his other half- had still been alive. And now it was dark, and his stomach was reminding him that he'd missed lunch and it had probably passed on to dinner time.

And Luna was still sitting on the stairs beside him. "Why are you still here, then? Don't you have carols to sing?" He immediately regretted snapping at her, but he let the questions stand between them like an angry barrier.

"Christmas time is one of the hardest times," came her high, soft voice, unaffected by his sudden hostility. "Do you remember when my mum died?"

He remembered.

_It was Boxing Day. He and Fred were flying around the orchard on their new second-hand brooms, practicing for Quidditch, when they realized that the small blond girl sitting against the fence to the back garden was watching them._

_"Is that Luna?" Fred asked, peering down at her._

_"Looks like," George answered. "Why isn't she smiling?"_

_They'd known Luna since they were all small, playing together in the trees between their houses. She was a carefree girl, always with a smile of wonderment on her face. And there she was, very definitely not smiling._

"Yeah," George replied.

"I was very sad, and you and Fred looked after me. You took me on broom rides and kept me away from your mum and Percy, and joked and pulled fun. You were trying to get me to smile."

He nodded. "Didn't... Didn't Fred kiss you?"

_"Alright, Georgie, I'm going to kiss her," Fred bravely declared._

_"You're what?" George asked in disbelief._

_"Girls like kissing, right? So I'm going to kiss her, see if that doesn't make her smile. You watch out for Mum." And, with George watching out for their mother, Fred took her by the shoulders and kissed her gently. And she smiled, a tender, sad sort of smile. But it was a smile._

"He did," Luna replied. "That was my first kiss. That's how I remember Fred; shy and brave and tender and dear."

"Does it ever stop hurting?" George asked after a time, his question barely a whisper.

"No. It does get easier, after a time. But Christmas is always hard. That's why I'm here, you see. I'm afraid I'm not terribly funny, but I can kiss you, just the way he kissed me."

"Luna..." Her name slipped from his mouth and hung between them like a heavy weight. He turned to look at her, just in time to see her blond head closing to his. Her lips brushed against his, soft and gentle, and the corners of his mouth turned up, despite himself.

"There, you see?" She wore the same sad smile she had all those years ago on Boxing Day, a sorrowful smile that mirrored his own. "Now you're smiling, too."


	4. Hermione and George

**A/N: Set the year after "Not the Right Weasley.**

**Part 4 of Christmas Snapshots, written for both 25 Days of Christmas and Connect the Characters from HPFC.**

**Pairing: George/Hermione, Prompt: Snowflakes**

It was snowing again, fat snowflakes that drifted down lazily to the ground. I was standing before the window and watching them fall to the white-dusted street below. I heard quiet footsteps behind me and then a study arm slipped securely about my waist, pulling me back flush against a familiar solid body. A chin rested gently on my shoulder and, out of the corner of my eye, I could see a shock of red hair and a flash of a brown eye. I had to smile.

"You always do love it when it snows, don't you?" he asked.

I nodded gently, then leaned my head against his. "I love the hush that everything gets. And it feels like it's just us, cut off from the world together."

"You're not changing your mind about going, then?" he teased.

"I have a very strong suspicion that it's going to be a lot of, 'You two don't have any big announcements, do you?' and, 'Lovely Victoire, I hope she gets some cousins soon!' and the like."

"On the plus side, you're not going to have a running commentary on exactly how brilliant Charlie is this year."

I shifted to look at him, his eyes so close to mine. "You mean... You're not Charlie?" I asked seriously. "You've been fooling me all this time!"

"Is that a sense of humor?" he returned. "You never should have moved in, Mione, I'm rubbing off on you."

"I have a sense of humor!" I protested.

"Where is it, then? Is it in here?" His arm tightened around my waist and the fingers of his other hand started dancing between my ribs.

"George!" I shrieked as I slumped over, laughing, my hands pushing weakly against his. We ended up in a breathless heap on the floor. I pulled myself into a sitting position and leaned over to give him a kiss. "I suppose we should get going soon, or your Mum is going to send someone after us."

"Hang on, I have something for you." He pushed up off the floor and walked away from the living room window. I was curious. We'd already exchanged gifts when we'd woken up that morning and he'd given me a thin bracelet in addition to the books I'd wanted. I heard him go down the stairs into the shop and it was a couple of minutes before he came back up, holding a small green-wrapped package in front of him.

I eyed it dubiously. Even as his girlfriend I wasn't immune to his pranks, but a glance at his face showed an absolutely sincere smile, with no trace of the mischief that usually preceded his practical jokes. I took it gently like I expected it to explode. It didn't, though, and I gingerly unwrapped it.

It was a sturdy box made of dark wood, and I opened it and drew the object out. "It's a snowglobe!" I exclaimed, wondering where he'd gotten a snowglobe. My parents had some, but they were strictly a muggle item and I'd never seen them in a wizarding home.

"Not quite, look closer." He sounded quite proud of himself.

At his urging, I pulled the clear glass ball up near my eyes and looked into it. It was snowing tiny white flakes without having to shake it. There was a miniature replica of The Burrow, and just outside the gate to the garden were a tiny red-haired man and a tiny woman with a thick mane of brown hair. As I watched, the tiny man lifted the tiny woman's hand to his mouth and kissed it and then he vanished and, after a second, so did she. Another second later, they came out of The Burrow and paused just outside the gate and the scene repeated.

I stood up and launched myself at him, wrapping my arms tightly around my neck. My throat was constricted with unshed happy tears.

"I take it you like it, then?" he teased gently, his own arms going behind my back, holding me closely to him.

"I love it!" I breathed when I could talk again. The scene in the snowglobe was exactly what had happened a year ago, the very first time he'd kissed me.

"You mentioned something about snowglobes last year and I did some research."

I pushed back and looked up into his face. I could still feel my eyes brimming with joyful moisture. "You did research? Maybe I'm rubbing off on you."

He leaned forward and gave me a gentle kiss. "I hope so, Mione."


	5. Hermione and Bill

**A/N: Part 5 of Christmas Snapshots, written for both 25 Days of Christmas and Connect the Characters from HPFC.**

**Pairing: Hermione/Bill, Prompt: Gifts**

"Well, that was lovely. Thank you for lunch." I gave my hands one final wipe on my napkin and tossed it on my empty plate. I was completely full to the point of stuffed. We were at the Leaky Cauldron for lunch and Hannah was an excellent cook.

My lunch companion, a pale blond with big gray eyes, checked her very muggle wristwatch. "It's not time to go back yet, I'm afraid."

I looked from her face to her plate, and then back again. "We're both done." I tried not to be irritated. I got irritated so easily lately, but Luna hadn't really done anything wrong.

"This is true, but _they're_ not done with your surprise yet, so we can't go back yet." She looked at me in a patiently expectant way, so very Luna.

"I'm getting a surprise?" I stared at her for a moment, but her clear eyes gave nothing away.

"Of course you are," she replied, as though it was the most obvious thing ever. "It's Christmas, isn't it? Christmas is the best time for surprises."

I narrowed my eyes as I regarded her. "I know what George thinks are surprises..." I started. I wasn't up for being a test subject. My day was going poorly enough without unfortunate bruises or rashes.

"Nothing like that, Hermione," she said, shaking her head. Was that a tone of censure in her voice? "A good surprise. A Christmas surprise."

I sighed. "I don't know that I'm really up for surprises at all. I know I'm not supposed to be letting it bother me, but I'm actually pretty upset that I'm going to miss Christmas with Bill." He'd said he'd be able to make it back for New Year's, which was really only just over a week away. But there was something just _so_ entirely depressing about the idea of going to The Burrow and seeing Ginny and Harry, and George and Luna, and Ron and whoever he was seeing for the next month and a half or so until that fell apart as all of his relationships inevitably did; especially when my own boyfriend was halfway around the world. Not that I was bitter or anything. International travel is tricky. It needs to be planned out and coordinated and there was apparently literally no way he could get back to England before the 30th.

"You'll get to see him soon. And I think your surprise will really cheer you up," she said brightly. She always sounded pleasant about everything.

"I can't sit here and do nothing for however long it's going to take," I said, and immediately regretted how cross I sounded. "I'm sorry, I just mean... I need to get up and do something."

"Oh, we can certainly do something!" she agreed. "What sort of something would you like to do?"

"The... bookstore?" If there was one place that was going to make me feel better, it was the bookstore.

She skipped along beside me as we went into the bookstore and then we split up and I lost myself amongst the shelves. My friends were trying to distract me and it was really nice. Luna had offered to take me out for lunch. The day before, Ginny had gone shopping with me. The day before that, Harry had stopped by and helped me with the tree. I had the week off for the Christmas holidays, thank you Ministry of Magic, and my friends were doing their best to make sure I wasn't dwelling on Bill's absence too much.

And, of course, George had this surprise planned. Whatever it was.

I picked out what I wanted and started looking around for Luna. She was a very distinctive person, especially in the bright orange dress she was wearing, but I couldn't find her at all. I stepped up to the register to pay for my new books. "Luna Lovegood, did she leave?" I asked the young lady behind the counter.

"Yes," came the answer.

I walked out with my two new purchases, frowning a little. It wasn't like Luna to just abandon me like that when we were out together. I walked quickly down the street to Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, a little worried and hoping that everything was ok.

The tall redhead at the counter with his back to me was definitely _not_ George. "Bill?" I breathed in disbelief. There was no mistaking the ponytail and the fang earring dangling from his ear. But he'd told me that there was no way he could get away.

He turned toward me and I ran to him, letting the books drop carelessly to the floor before launching myself at him. His arms came around my back, holding me up, and I wrapped my arms around his shoulders and my legs around his waist. "Hi there," he greeted.

"You said..." I trailed off, burying my face in his shoulder.

"A certain brother-in-law threw his famous name around to arrange a way for me to come home, as a gift to us." I felt his lips on my hair.

I lifted my head out of his shoulder and our lips met with a sort of desperation. "Hey now!" George broke in and Bill pulled back, a wolfish grin on his face. "This is a family shop, we won't have any of that here!"

"Just a hello kiss," Bill protested, and I unwound my limbs from around him and let him set me gently on my feet.

"Yeah, I've seen what happens to poor Granger's neck when you just say hello," George teased.

I ducked my head into Bill's chest to hide the hot rush of color that I felt in my cheeks. "We should probably... go..." I murmured.

"Absolutely excellent idea. See you later, little brother. Bye, Luna."

I had just enough time to glance over and see Luna smiling benevolently with her hand on George's shoulder before everything twisted around me and then I was standing in our small front garden.

In a moment, we were inside, lips locked together and hands frantically removing each other's clothing. Before I really realized it, we were upstairs and in Bill's bed, doing our very best to make up for lost time.

Afterward, we were snuggled up together under the blankets, me laying on my side with my head on his arm and my arm draped lazily across his chest. "We are going to have to find something better to give Harry," I murmured, and Bill chuckled.


	6. Luna and Bill

**A/N: Will they? Won't they? I'm not sure!**

**Part 6 of Christmas Snapshots, written for both 25 Days of Christmas and Connect the Characters from HPFC.**

**Pairing: Bill/Luna, Prompt: Secret Santa**

She felt a gentle tug on the long blond plait that trailed down her back and turned around to find the source of it. "Hello, Bill Weasley," she greeted in her pleasant way, craning her head back to look up into his face.

"Hi, Luna," he replied with a playful smile. "What brings you out here?" They were standing by the front doors to Gringotts Wizarding Bank, and he took her elbow to gently pull her out of the way of wizards and witches who were streaming in and out of the busy bank.

"I needed some galleons to buy a present for Ginny. I drew her name this year." She tilted her head slightly to the side as she regarded him. "I don't think I was supposed to mention that, but I don't see the harm in it since there are so very many of us and obviously I'm not getting a gift for you." The Weasley family and assorted adopted family members had decided there were just too many family members to buy a gift for each of them and, now that the kids were all grown, it would be simpler to randomly draw a name and only be responsible for getting a gift for that person. "I'm not entirely sure what to get her."

"Something Quidditch related," Bill suggested.

"I don't think so. Her birthday was not too long ago, and that's all she got. I was thinking of something a little more creative." Her brow furrowed as she spoke. "I'll have a look around."

"I'll come with you," he offered. "I just got off work."

"Oh. That's nice. Maybe you can help." The lean redhead moved forward and opened the door, ushering Luna ahead of him before stepping out beside her into Diagon Alley. It was already mostly dark. The clouds above had been threatening sleet all afternoon and the air was cold and heavy with moisture.

"You could ask Seamus," he said, speaking of Ginny's fiance.

"No. She'll ask him and then he'll tell her because she's really good at talking him into things." She leaned in close to him and whispered conspiratorily, "I think it's the sex." She started walking, heading in the direction of Eeylops Owl Emporium.

He gave a bemused sort of chuckle and caught up with her easily just outside the Owl Emporium. "I think they have an owl."

"They do, and I suppose owl treats would be more of a gift for the owl than for Ginny." Luna sighed and turned to walk across to the bookshop. She drew to a stop in front of the door and looked up at Bill. "I don't like giving books as gifts, unless I'm giving them to Hermione. Gifts should be fun and unexpected."

"Well, what's fun and unexpected?"

"Many things are fun, Bill, but if I knew what was unexpected then it wouldn't be unexpected anymore," she replied seriously, her large eyes widening slightly as if for emphasis.

He chuckled again. "I guess you're right."

"George has a lot of fun things, maybe I can turn up something unexpected, too." She turned toward the garish shop and he walked along beside her, opening the door and holding it again when they arrived.

The shop was as busy as it always was. "A Pygmy Puff!" Luna exclaimed decisively as she spotted the display of fuzzy little creatures. "She hasn't had one since Arnold and I think they're going to want to have a baby soon, so this would be good practice. And," she continued seriously, "it would be good to see once and for all if they talk on Boxing Day."

A multitude of questions flashed through Bill's eyes, but he settled on, "Do you like Pygmy Puffs?"

"Not really," she replied. "I'm not very good with pets."

She arranged with George to have him bring one at Christmas and when she tried to pay, he waved her away. "You helped me with the Christmas lights, and they're so successful. I can't take your money," he told her.

"Christmas lights?" Bill asked when they were back out in the street.

"Oh, yes. They're a muggle tradition, you see, and I helped George figure them out for us. Hundreds of little tiny lights and you hang them on the outside of your house. I have some on mine, they're very pretty. You should come and see them before I take them down." She peered into her small sack of galleons and frowned a little. "Well, since I didn't have to buy a gift, let me buy you a drink. I always feel silly if I have to put the same amount of money back into the bank as I just took out of it."

"I wouldn't say no to a drink," he said.

It was just starting to sleet as they dashed the last few steps into the Leaky Cauldron. They took a seat at a corner table. Contrary to how Tom had kept the pub when he'd run it, Hannah Longbottom kept it cheery and warm.

The warm butterbeer they ordered was brought to them by Neville, who kissed Luna's cheek and stayed to chat for a few moments before leaving them to their drinks.

"If you could make a Christmas wish, what would it be?" Luna asked seriously after a few minutes of companionable silence spent drinking the delicious beverage.

"Don't know," the tall wizard answered slowly, leaning forward to rest his forearms on the table. "Are you fishing for an answer for someone else?" he asked with a grin.

"Perhaps," she answered evenly, her eyes giving nothing away. "Christmas is a good time for wishing, though."

"What about you, Luna?"

"Someone to spend Christmas with," she answered quickly, not missing a beat. "Dad's quite happy with his new wife in Spain, but Christmas morning without family is very lonely."

"It is," he replied in a knowing way. This would be his second Christmas morning alone, since Fleur had left him and gone back to France. "I think that would be my answer too, come to think of it." She was intent on her mug of butterbeer and missed the calculating look in his eyes.

They finished their drinks and parted with a hug.

* * *

A knock at the door surprised Luna. She was just settling down with a mug of spiced rum. It was long past dark and she certainly wasn't expecting any visitors. She definitely wasn't expecting to see Bill standing at the door with his hands pushed deep into his pockets.

"Ah, hello," he greeted. "Your lights look really good."

"Thank you," she said, blinking up at him owlishly. "Would you care to come in?"

"Love to," he replied, and when she moved aside, he walked quickly into the rebuilt house that stood in the same place her family's house had before it had been destroyed.

"Would you like a drink?" she asked politely as she watched him settle in one of the squashy stuffed chairs in front of the fire.

"That would be lovely, thank you."

She got him his own spiced ale and sat in the other chair, where she'd been sitting before he interrupted her. "I wasn't expecting you," she said, watching him

"No." He turned his head to look at her. "Look. I'm... I drew your name. And you said that you wanted family to spend Christmas morning with, so I was thinking if I slept here then I would still be here Christmas morning and we could both get our wish."

Her eyes shone as she smiled. "That sounds perfect."


	7. Luna and Oliver

**A/N: This was fun to write! :D**

**Part 7 of Christmas Snapshots, written for both 25 Days of Christmas and Connect the Characters from HPFC.**

**Pairing: Luna/Oliver, Prompt: Decorating the tree**

"Excuse me," I said to the broad-shouldered man that walked through the door. "You're very tall. Can you help me with the star?" I was clinging to the top of a ladder in front of the massive tree that Fred and George had erected before the front window.

The brown-haired wizard looked behind himself as if to ensure I was speaking to him, then peered up to where I was perched atop the ladder. "Why not use magic?" he asked.

"You have to be very careful using magic in here," I replied seriously, gesturing to the shelves of magical products. "If you're not very careful, the whole shop could just explode. I've never been exploded, but I can't imagine I'd care for it too much. I prefer just to do it myself."

"Er, alright."

I climbed down the ladder and held out the star to him. He hesitated for a moment, then took it and ascended the ladder. He had an excellent sense of balance and plopped the star triumphantly on top of the tree and was just climbing down again when my bosses came out of the back room.

"Wood!" they cried together and he was very startled so that the ladder jerked, but he managed to right it quickly and come to the floor on his feet. "Did Luna put you to work?" George asked.

"We're not paying you," Fred teased, except he wasn't really teasing at all.

They all met together in the center of the shop and there was much clapping of shoulders and shaking of hands and a lot of talk about Quidditch.

I took the delicate baubles out of the boxes and hung them on the tree, followed by the enchanted candles. The hour passed for the shop to close and, before going up the ladder to decorate the top portion of the tree, I locked the door and flipped the sign to "Closed."

As I climbed the ladder again, I heard the discussion pause and felt three pairs of eyes on me. "I'll finish soon," I told the twins.

"No rush," Fred replied mildly. It always amazed them that I could tell the difference between them without looking. The conversation picked up again and I let it flow over my ears, not really paying attention to whatever they were saying as I finished trimming the tree.

"There," I said to myself, alighting to the floor. I stepped back to take in the effect of the tree and nodded in satisfaction. I was aware that the noise of congenial conversation had moved from the shop and up the back stairs to where the twins kept their flat. From the sound of it, the door was open. I returned the ladder and empty boxes to the back room and went up the stairs, knocking softly on the slightly open door before pushing it fully open and going into the living room. "I'm finished," I announced. "I'll see you tomorrow afternoon."

"Come and have a drink," George invited, gesturing to the bottle of Firewhiskey the three of them were sharing.

I looked between them, Fred and George lounged on their chartreuse sofa and Wood sitting in a transfigured easy chair. "Alright." I moved through the room and sat on the floor in front of the sofa between the twins' legs.

"Wood, this is Luna, our invaluable assistant. Luna, this is Oliver Wood," Fred introduced us.

"He's a mate from school," George added.

"Captain of the Quidditch team," Fred agreed.

"Humble-"

"Brave-"

"Talented-"

"Stunningly handsome-"

"You reckon?" George asked.

"'swhat Alicia and Katie always said," Fred responded. "Of course, we're better looking."

"Naturally," his brother agreed.

"It's nice to meet you," Oliver Wood broke in around his chuckle.

"You as well," I replied. "I'm not stunned, but you are handsome." My statement made Oliver Wood choke on his mouthful of the amber liquid.

"That's our Luna," George said, and I felt him shift forward to squeeze my shoulder.

"She is alarmingly blunt," Fred told him. "Wood, will you do the honors?" His hand reached into my line of vision, pointing at the bottle of Firewhiskey and an empty glass that sat right beside it.

He poured me a finger of the drink and handed me the glass. We sat and talked for a while and the twins did their best to keep me involved in the conversation.

After a time, I glanced at my watch. "I should go along home," I said, noting the late hour. "I do have to work tomorrow."

Oliver Wood looked at his own timepiece and made a face. "Well, there's me completely losing track of time. I should head out as well."

"You have somewhere to sleep tonight?" George asked as we all got to our feet.

"I have a room at the Leaky," the brown-haired Quidditch player replied.

"Then you should walk Luna home," Fred told him.

"That's just silly, Fred," I informed him pleasantly. "My flat is on the other side of Diagon Alley."

"Over by Knockturn Alley," George told Oliver Wood knowingly. "You know what goes on down there."

I looked between the red haired men for a moment, then turned toward their guest. "They're trying to get us romantically involved," I informed him.

"No!" George protested.

"Absolutely not!" Fred declared.

"We would never!"

"Maybe a little."

"Just a bit."

"She is pretty."

"And awfully available."

"She thinks you're handsome."

"And is awfully available."

"You're available too-"

"Alright!" Oliver Wood interjected, his voice raised to be heard over the twins. "Luna, may I walk you home?"

"Certainly, Oliver Wood," I replied seriously.

"Just Oliver is fine," he told me, gesturing me down the stairs to the shop below.

"Lock up behind you," Fred called after me.

"You can be a little late tomorrow," George added.

I led the way down the stairs and unlocked the door, then locked again after we were outside in the cold night air.

"Do they do this often, then?" he asked. "Harangue strange men into walking you home, I mean."

I looked at him for a moment before starting to walk down the street to where I had a small flat above Ollivander's. He fell in step beside me. "No. They're quite protective of me usually. They're like brothers to me, which is nice. I didn't have any growing up." I gave him another glance before turning back to watch where I was going. "I imagine this means they approve of you."

"Oh," he said shortly.

"Were you treated to a similar list of my better attributes?"

He chuckled at that. "I was. Although they did go off into a tangent about you being odd- no, more eccentric- very eccentric- but loveable."

"That certainly sounds like something they would say." We came to a stop in front of the wand-maker's shop. "This is where I live."

"I'm only in town for a few days, but would you like to get a drink with me tomorrow?" he asked suddenly, turning to face me and looking down in my face. His eyes were exactly the color of melted chocolate. "After all, Fred and George already approve of me." His mouth gave a wry twist upwards.

"Oh. That would be nice," I answered earnestly.

He leaned forward and kissed my cheek. "I'll collect you at the shop tomorrow night."


	8. Ginny and Oliver

**A/N: Part 8 of Christmas Snapshots, written for both 25 Days of Christmas and Connect the Characters from HPFC.**

**Pairing: Oliver/Ginny, Prompt: Green**

"Whose bloody idea was this?" I asked Neville, my date, as I looked around the room. That was the thing about being on an all-witch Quidditch team, you couldn't exactly take another teammate to the Ball.

The Department of Magical Games and Sports had decided for some unknown and entirely ridiculous reason that there should be a Yule Ball for all of the British and Irish League players. It was very likely going to end in a riot. I'd asked Neville to go with me as a friend because I'd done the same thing for him years ago in school and Neville was a dear and said he would.

There we all were in a function room in a wizard-friendly hotel, socializing in small groups that were mostly made up of our teams. I'd not-so-subtly chosen dark green dress robes for the occasion, as had most of my team members. We weren't the only ones dressing in our colors. Honestly, what had the Ministry been thinking?

I caught sight of Wood from Puddlemere United, wearing navy blue of course, and gave him a rather cheeky wink. We'd beaten them at our last encounter and I'd thrown my share of Quaffles past him. I grinned as I saw a muscle working in his jaw as he stared back at me, his brown eyes hard.

"D'you want to dance?" Neville asked me, offering me his hand.

"Absolutely," I agreed. I took his hand and let him lead me out to the dance floor. Neville was a great dancer. He hadn't been back when we'd been in school but he was now. We moved around the dance floor gracefully. I loved to dance.

"I hate the photographers," he grumbled quietly, shooting a side-look to the wizard who was currently circling us with a camera, trying to get the best shot.

"Me too, but maybe them being here will stop a riot."

"A riot?" His dark eyes flew to mine, alarmed. "What, you mean here?"

"Does anyone really look like they're having a relaxed time?" I asked, gesturing to the nearest knot of players with my head. "You brought your wand, didn't you?"

"Of course I did."

"You killed Voldemort's snake," I told him, squeezing his hand reassuringly. "You can take a few Quidditch players." The look of panic on his face didn't ease at all. "We'll just hope it won't come to that," I said kindly, wondering if this was, perhaps, a big mistake.

"Gran's been asking after you," he told me after a long pause of seeking something to say. "She's been hinting that you would make a lovely addition to the Longbottom family."

I rolled my eyes. "Of course she has," I said with some amusement. I'd met her some time ago and she thought that Luna, Neville's current girlfriend, was just too odd for her grandson. I, of course, came from a stable pureblood family full of powerful, intelligent wizards and witches, and that would be the ideal thing to add to the Longbottom line. "You should just elope. Come out to Wales, get married, and get back and she won't be able to say anything."

Before he could answer, I heard a throat clearing behind me. "Excuse me," broke in a thick Scottish accent. "May I cut in?"

From the look in Neville's eyes, it wasn't as though he had much of a choice. He'd faced down Voldemort's entire army and he was being intimidated by a Quidditch player? "Alright," he said and quickly abandoned me in the middle of the dance floor.

I whirled on him. Wood, of course. "You know, my brothers talked about how brilliant you were in school, but I seem to have no problem scoring against you." That wasn't entirely true, he'd blocked a good few of my shots, but I had to smile as the muscle in his jaw worked again.

He held out his hand to me and I hesitated, only taking it when the look in his eye became challenging. Two could play this game. I put my other hand on his shoulder and we began to dance. He wasn't as good at it as Neville, but I had to admit that he wasn't terrible.

"Well, of course I had to take it easy on you," he told me. "It's important to encourage the young witches in the League so you don't flood the changing rooms with tears after every match."

"Tears?" I exclaimed incredulously. I could feel the hot rush of blood to my face. If he wasn't careful, we were going to be the ones starting the riot, right in the middle of the dance floor. "Is that what was happening when I scored that fifth goal on you? You were crying so hard you couldn't see the Quaffle when it flew right over your shoulder?"

His fingers dug into my waist and I looked up at him, meeting his eyes unabashed. The song ended just then and I pulled myself out of his grip. "It's been lovely," I told him and swept past him to rejoin my teammates, who were all wearing expressions of varying degrees of amusement. They weren't close enough to hear us, but the expression on Wood's face made it clear who the winner of that little altercation was.

I didn't get very far. His hand caught the long sleeve of my green robes and pulled, turning me back to face him. He glared down at me, a fierceness in his eyes. Behind me, I could hear the rustle as my teammates got to their feet, and over his shoulder I could see the rest of Puddlemere United doing the same, expressions dark and hostile. There really was going to be a Quidditch riot, right here in the function room of the poor hotel. _What had the Ministry been thinking_?

Wood's large hand fastened securely over my elbow. I could see wands being pulled out; I reached for my own. The photographers were circling us now, where they weren't being elbowed out of the way by players.

The burly keeper snatched my other hand before I got to my wand. And then, suddenly, I was flush against the front of his blue robes and his lips were crashing down on mine.

_Oh_.

I could see the flash from the cameras behind my closed eyelids, but I just didn't care. All of the tension, the aggression, we poured into each other, our lips moving frantically, tongues meeting, teeth catching.

* * *

I was lazing in the smooth sheets of the hotel bed on my stomach, naked and still mostly covered by the warm blanket and eating a piece of toast.

A folded paper flopped down beside my elbow, opening as it hit the bed. I watched the figures on the front page staring at each other for a long second before they came together, first their lips met and then their arms were around each other. After a moment, the kiss was cut off and the people on the paper were staring at each other again. "We look good," I noted in approval, raising my eyes to where Wood was standing at the end of the bed, wrapped in a towel. There wasn't a lick of fat on him. "They sure didn't waste any time getting this printed."

"No, and I'm sure it won't be long before we start getting angry letters." His tone was matter-of-fact as he rested his hands on his hips.

"Regret anything?" I asked teasingly. It hadn't been very long after that picture had been taken that we'd left the ball and secured ourselves a room for the night.

"Only that we're going to have to check out in an hour."

"We could... Not..." I suggested, raising an eyebrow at him, sweeping the sheets back invitingly.

The towel dropped to the floor.


	9. Ginny and Remus

**A/N: Part 9 of Christmas Snapshots, written for both 25 Days of Christmas and Connect the Characters from HPFC.**

******Pairing: Ginny/Remus, Prompt: Mistletoe**

The familiar anguished wails pulled me immediately from sleep. I slipped out of bed and pulled on my dressing gown before rushing down the hall to where the crying was coming from. _Please don't wake up Remus_, I willed him silently. It was closing on the full moon and my former professor had enough to worry about.

"Teddy," I called softly as I pushed into his room, sparing a glance at the still-closed door that connected his room to his father's. I was a little reassured to hear Remus snoring fitfully. I quickly moved to where the little boy was sitting on the bottom of his crib, his face all screwed up with his noisy sobs. "Did you have a bad dream, Teddy?" I asked, picking him up and pulling him close against me. The room was lit only by the soft glow of the clock on the wall.

He quieted as soon as he was nestled into my shoulder and he clutched the front of my robe with his tiny hands. I stroked his back and held him close, whispering words of comfort into his ear. He was warm from sleep and my long, red hair stuck to his damp cheeks. "Are you ready to go back to bed?" I asked him after a while and lowered him gently back into the crib. He curled up on his side, pulling his favorite stuffed wolf to him, and I tucked the soft knit blanket over him.

As he settled back in to sleep, I glanced at the glowing face of the clock on the wall. 5:30. I sighed quietly. I might as well get up for the day. In another hour, Remus would be up and instead of tossing and turning for the next hour, I could have coffee and breakfast ready for him. I stole silently from the room, headed downstairs to the kitchen.

About an hour later, I heard my housemate push open the door to the kitchen and I paused from where I was getting a plate of toast and bananas ready for Teddy to smile over my shoulder at him. "Morning," I greeted. He looked like he hadn't had much better of a sleep than his son had.

"Morning," he replied, settling Teddy into his high chair before slumping into a seat at the long, rectangular table.

"Did you sleep well?" I asked, taking his favorite mug out of the counter and pouring a fresh cup of coffee into it.

"No," he admitted. He sounded tired.

I added just a bit of cream to the steaming mug and walked over to settle it down in front of him. "Teddy didn't either, he was up a few times." I covered his shoulder with my hand for just a moment.

"Thank you, Ginny."

"Of course," I replied with a smile. "Hermione dropped off a new lot of potions yesterday. I'll get one for you after I get a certain little boy his breakfast." I walked over to where Teddy was sitting in his high chair, watching me with a grin. I dropped a kiss on top of his sandy hair. "Are you hungry?" I asked him.

"Yeah!" he exclaimed as I got the plate of food and set it on the tray so he could feed himself.

I pulled Remus' breakfast from where it was warming in the oven and set it down in front of him, as well as a knife and fork.

"You didn't have to," he protested, but his eyes were fixed hungrily on the plate of sausage and bacon I'd made for him. The closer it got to the full moon, the more he loved meat.

"I have to take care of my boys," I quipped, and I could feel his eyes on me as I got my own cup of coffee and one of the potions Hermione had dropped off. I sat down at the table opposite him where I could watch Teddy shoving food into his mouth and put the potion in front of Remus. Officially I was Teddy's nanny, a position I'd volunteered for when I'd walked in on Remus arguing with Mum about needing his own household. After the final battle of the war, he'd stayed at The Burrow to recover and by the time I was finished with school, he was getting antsy. Unofficially, I cared for both of them. I did most of the cooking and the cleaning and helped Remus get through his monthly change. With the wolfsbane potions from Hermione, it wasn't so bad for him, but it left him very drained.

"What are you going to do today?" he asked after he'd eaten the top third of his plate.

"I think we'll go and get a tree and start decorating." He'd told me to go ahead and Christmas the place up, and he'd help out when I needed him to.

"Twee!" Teddy enthused from his spot against the wall, his hair turning a brilliant green.

"See?" I asked, grinning. "Now we have to. That's right, Teddy!" I exclaimed, turning my attention back to the toddler. "A big one, right?"

"Yeah!"

Remus chuckled. "Can you manage a tree and Teddy at the same time?"

I nodded, my mouth too full of coffee to answer right away. "Hogsmeade," I said after I swallowed. "I can apparate in and out, we'll be fine."

He finished eating and grimaced as he swallowed the wolfsbane potion. "Alright. Off to work." He kissed the hair on top of Teddy's head- off-white now, like the flesh of the banana that was the boy's favorite food. "Bye, Teddy."

"Bye Daddy," Teddy replied. "Kith Dinny!" That's what he called me. For about a week now, he'd been demanding kisses for me when his father left for work.

I dutifully turned up my cheek and Remus dropped a chaste kiss there before heading off to work. The brief touch of his lips sent a pleasant shiver through me and not for the first time I wished... Well, it didn't matter what I wished. "Are you all done?" I asked Teddy.

"Yeah!" That was his favorite word. According to Mum, I was lucky that it wasn't, "No," like mine had been.

I bolted the rest of the coffee and went around to lift him out of his high chair, using a quick _Scourgify_ to get the sticky crumbs off of his hands and face. "You ready to go and find a tree?"

"Twee!" he agreed, looking eagerly up into my face. He was such a happy little boy, and I really enjoyed taking care of him.

* * *

I left the tree on the front steps while I went in and got Teddy settled in for his nap. I was more than a little surprised to see Harry standing in the foyer with my large tree when I came back down the stairs. "Harry!" I greeted, rushing down to give him a hug. "What are you doing here?" Technically it was his house that we were living in, but Harry had declared he wanted nothing to do with 12 Grimmauld Place and had insisted that Remus needed to live there because it was what Sirius would have wanted.

"Officially, I'm on lunch. Unofficially, I promised Remus I'd stop in and make sure you're managing with the tree." He ignored my rolled eyes as he looked up at the tree. "Are you sure you got the biggest one, Gin?" he teased.

"Teddy insisted," I told him. "Tell Remus I'm fine. He worries too much."

"Usually people worry 'too much' when they're 'interested,'" he said knowingly.

I shook my head, ignoring the flicker of hope. "Did he tell you that?" After a moment of silence, I continued. "Thought not. He's just grateful that I'm looking after Teddy."

Harry watched me for a moment. "Did you find Hermione's present?"

I peered up at him questioningly. His green eyes behind the glasses gave nothing away. "She didn't say anything about a present."

"She told me she hid it so the two of you could find it together." He grinned and waggled his eyebrows.

"You two! Honestly! What, you're happy together so you need to pair off the rest of your friends?" I settled my hands impatiently on my hips, ignoring the fact that I very probably looked just like Mum when I did that.

"Well, you like him..." He winced at my glare. "Right. I'll be going now so I can get some eating done. Good luck finding that present!" He scurried out of the house before I could say another word and I stared after him, shaking my head.

* * *

Remus looked harried as he came into the living room from settling down Teddy for the night. "The tree looks good," he said admiringly, coming to stand just behind me. He was so close that I could feel the heat from his body, even through our clothes. He always ran a little hotter when it got close to the full moon. "Now all it needs is presents underneath."

"You ok?" I asked quietly.

"Fine," he replied. "Just... Teddy didn't want to go to bed, as usual, and it's the full moon in three days. I think it makes him a bit restless, too."

I nodded. It wasn't the first time that had come up in conversation between us, and I knew it made him feel guilty. I turned to face him. "He's fine," I reassured him. "He's not a werewolf, Remus, he's just a little boy."

He lifted a hand to trail the backs of his fingers across my cheeks, making me shiver. "Sweet Ginny," he murmured to me, his brown eyes flitting back and forth between mine.

I closed my eyes. I couldn't look at him when he was so close, looking at me so intensely. I almost jumped out of my skin when I felt the soft touch of his lips against mine. I opened my eyes again and he pointed up. There was a bundle of mistletoe hung from the ceiling. "Hermione," I muttered. I had not hung that mistletoe, and that was just the type of thing my friend would do in her quest to get Remus and I together. Find it together; we found it, alright.

His green eyes looked a question at me. "I think Hermione put that there. Harry said she left a present and we were supposed to find it together."

"You didn't hang that?" he asked, eyebrows raised.

I shook my head. "Harry and Hermione seem to think we would be perfect together." I tried to keep the wistfulness out of my voice, I really did.

I made to step away from him, but his arms circled about me, folding me against his chest. "I was hoping... It doesn't matter. I promised her..." I stilled against him, hardly daring to breathe. "She made me promise that I wouldn't run from love again. She told me I would find it and I couldn't run, and I promised..." I watched the Adam's apple in his throat bob as he swallowed. "It's you, Ginny. I love... you."

I felt him move back from me and his eyes bored down into mine. He stared at me and I peered back, too afraid to speak. "Say something. Tell me you don't feel the same way I do when Teddy tells me to kiss you. Tell me you're leaving. Tell me you don't-"

I slipped my hands up, behind his head, and pulled him down to kiss me again.


	10. Remus and Tonks

**A/N: Part 10 of Christmas Snapshots, written for both 25 Days of Christmas and Connect the Characters from HPFC.**

**Pairing: Remus/Tonks, Prompt: Making cookies**

The smell of something burning pricked his sensitive nostrils. "Dora?" he called, getting to his feet from where he was sitting on the lounge in front of the roaring fire in the sitting room. "Dora, is something burning?"

He followed his nose through the house to the kitchen, which was definitely the source of the smell. His pink-haired wife had just pulled a cookie sheet out of the oven, and that seemed to be the source of the smell. Remus eyed the shaped cookies dubiously. "I think they might be burned on the bottom," he said. The dark brown cookies looked fine from the top, but his highly tuned sense of smell told him differently.

"Gingerbread," she said, pointing to the cookies. "I've been craving gingerbread. Didn't you ever decorate gingerbread-men when you were a boy?"

"I did, but something tells me these aren't going to be much good."

She sighed and sat heavily at the rickety wooden table. "I wish I had your nose for cooking," she said glumly. "I never was much good with the whole domestic thing."

"You sit there," he told her, stooping to kiss her forehead, "and I'll make another tray of cookies. And then we can decorate them together."

"We could start a tradition?" she asked, her customary good cheer coming back into her face as she settled back in the chair, her hands coming to rest on her softly rounded belly. "What traditions did your family have for Christmas?" The upcoming expansion of their own family made the witch very keen on family traditions.

He rolled up the sleeves on his worn cardigan and, after a quick spell to clean his hands, took the rest of the dough out of the mixing bowl and dropped it on the counter and began rolling it out. "The tree, of course. Lights outside, Mum loved her Christmas lights. She would always take me about whatever town we were in so we could see all the houses all lit up."

"We should do that," the pink-haired witch known as Dora said. "I guess that's one good thing about living around muggles, they know how to decorate pretty well for Christmas." She paused for a moment and her hair became red striped with green. "There. How's that?"

He looked behind him and had to smile. "Perfect, Dora. Now you look like a Muggle Christmas elf. Where are the cutters?"

"Top of the stove, I think."

He picked up the first one and turned back to her, holding it aloft. "A wolf? Really?"

"And a witch," she replied with a grin. "I picked them up at Halloween."

He wanted to be annoyed with her, he was still feeling guilty about the chance that their unborn child could be a werewolf, but she looked so pleased with herself that he just couldn't. "Did you have to get a wolf?" Annoyed or not, he couldn't stop the question from coming out.

"Of course," she replied smartly. "Now there's one for each of us. Remus, you know I love you, fur and all."

"But what about the baby?"

She rubbed the bulge of pregnancy, just beginning to show over the top of her elastic-waisted jeans. "Kingsley will make sure we have enough Wolfsbane potion for both of you. You need to stop worrying."

He sighed and turned back to the dough. "I know what it's like," he said quietly, pushing the cutters into the dough. "You don't."

"No, I don't. But you do. And who would be better to help a werewolf cub than his own father?" When he didn't answer, she continued. "Besides, he might come out like Bill; likes his meat and gets a little restless at the full moon. Or," and he found that she'd gotten to her feet and come to stand behind him, her arms around his waist and her head leaning against his back. "Or he could be like me."

He didn't want to ruin her day by having this argument with her again. They'd already had it too many times to count. Instead he asked, "You're sure it's a boy?"

"Of course he's a boy," she replied, and Remus could hear the smile in her voice. "Mum _is_ good with the domestic charms."


End file.
